County relies on property tax, but can’t raise it enough to meet demands.

Source: Bexar County

Concerned by rising expectations for city-type services in outlying areas, Bexar County officials have launched a detailed examination of the consequences of urban sprawl.

The findings could spur annexations or lead to creation of new cities and special service districts in areas without the full array of municipal services.

An April 3 deadline was set for consultant proposals, which also will explore shortcomings in county powers to regulate growth outside city limits.

County commissioners authorized the study Feb. 21 in the wake of predictions that by the end of this decade, one-fifth of the county's population will live in the unincorporated area. Many of those residents complain that they lack vigorous law enforcement and fire protection, smooth roads, adequate drainage, parks, libraries and public transportation — necessities or amenities the county can't always provide.

County Manager David Smith said that given the projected growth — and several consecutive years of tight budgets — the county must figure out a way to keep pace with residents' demand for services.

“We won't legally be able to raise property taxes to fund a level of services equal to what the city currently provides,” he warned.

About 250,000 people live in Bexar County's unincorporated area, and an additional 150,000 residents could be added by 2020 — the equivalent of half of Austin relying on the county, Smith said.

Given that scenario, “we want to take a look at some of the options,” said Tina Smith-Dean of the county's Planning and Resource Management Department. “The first thing we're going to ask for is a population projection through 2030.”

Consultants will scrutinize San Antonio's annexation policies — the city suspended annexation eight years ago — and identify “characteristics of areas that would be good candidates for annexation” by San Antonio or other cities, she said.

The consultant report will explain incorporation, a complicated process, for areas thinking about becoming cities, Smith-Dean said. Few new cities have incorporated in Bexar County in recent decades — Von Ormy being the most recent, in 2008, after petitioning San Antonio to be released from its extraterritorial jurisdiction.

Another South Bexar County community is poised to do the same. Residents of the Sandy Oaks area south of Braunig Lake are mounting a petition drive after consulting with Von Ormy Mayor Art Martinez de Vara.

“Nobody really knows how to do this, so we purposely left our website up with a narrative of everything we did — the forms and whatnot — so that other communities could model us,” Martinez de Vara said.

“Some folks in Sandy Oaks found that website and started the process,” he said. Their motivation “is very similar to ours — they lack basic municipal services and they're much larger than us. They're 5,000, and we're only 1,300.”

Sandy Oaks resident Pedro Orduño said the community began organizing about a year ago, when it got its 2010 census data.

“We're bigger than Somerset and China Grove,” he said.

A Sandy Oaks land survey is under way and possible city limits containing 9 square miles have been identified. By the end of this month, the community hopes to approach San Antonio to get out of its ETJ. A vote among area residents would follow.

“We want our own police protection, animal control and fire protection,” Orduño said. Because the area has low property values and relies on septic tanks, “we don't think the city is interested in acquiring us,” he said.

The county's consultant also will evaluate the need for districts that provide utilities, EMS and fire protection, roads and other services.

“We want to get a menu for special service districts that explains what they do and how they work, and provide examples of areas where those special districts have worked in Texas,” Smith-Dean said. “It's not a one-size-fits-all approach.”

Recommendations also will be sought on legislative changes to increase county authority to regulate nuisances, trash and other issues — power that the Legislature has been reluctant to grant.

Even so, “I'm glad we're moving forward on this because as you can see by the projections, we are going to have the seventh-largest city in Texas” within the county's unincorporated area, said County Judge Nelson Wolff. Areas west of Loop 1604 are of great concern: Despite their numbers, residents in new subdivisions there might have trouble fighting for basic services and amenities, Wolff said.

“That whole area between Shaenfield Road all the way to U.S. 90 — that's the growth area — it's not the rich out there. It's the average citizen that's going to pay a big, big price if something isn't worked out to provide the services,” he said.

Precinct 3 Commissioner Kevin Wolff, whose North Side turf has shown the most population growth, said other suburbs are eager to see if San Antonio chooses to resume annexation or allow subdivisions in its ETJ to become cities or be annexed by smaller cities.

“We're going to see here very shortly whether San Antonio is willing to give up their cake and not eat it, too,” he said.